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This class has taught me so much about how to proceed in acting around children. Every unit opened my eyes on how I should challenge my pre existing thoughts and change them to look at kids in a different way. Agency plays a big role in this as now every kid I interact with I will see as being able to express this agency no matter what. I also learned the importance of not intruding when children are playing and to avoid belittling the development process that is taking place. looking back, I can totally see myself interrupting asking the kids silly questions that ruins the whole process of growing going on as they play. Now when I see kids playing, my first instinct is not going to be to insert myself but it instead will be to simply listen to the amazing things they will be discussing and learning. The power of observation of children is something very big I will take away from this course.

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As a child, technology did not play a very large part in my childhood. On road trips, we would watch movies on the car movie player, or I would play educational games on the desktop computer we all shared but that was about the extent of it. Usually my parents didn't give us the option and made us play with games interacting with each other or outside. As I got older, the use of technology increased obviously but as a young child it was a slim part of my life. After doing research and discussing in class, I obviously understand the use of it is inevitable so the steps that one can take now is about control and filtration. I think it is a big red flag that people in Silicon Valley who know most about technology do not even let their children use it. This should show us all the impacts it will have if the very creators don't trust it with the development of their children. While sometimes it can be helpful and educational, I think avoiding it as much as possible for kids is best. I am grateful for my parents hesitancy to let us use it and I know if I was raised in this day in age they would still have the same beliefs despite the increase in use or convenience that technology can bring.

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Week 12: Relationships with earth, land, and outdoors

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Week 12: Relationships with earth, land, and outdoors

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I loved this week getting to learn about the origins the land I thought I was so familiar with. When I trace my family back in history, we come from Europe, so I cannot say I was familiar with the history of where we live. Despite this, I think it is very important to educate yourself to be able to respect these lands and the people that originally inhabited it, instead of going about life blindly not knowing anything about the origins. When it came to nature as a child, my siblings and I were always encouraged to be outside. If having a choice between staying inside or being outside, the answer was always being in fresh air. We also took trips as a family that involved outside interaction. Whether this was hiking, swimming, fishing, or just lounging enjoying nature my family was there. I can appreciate this greatly now because I know how important nature is to an individual and their growth. I have my parents to thank for my love of the outdoors and what I gained from that!

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Personally, I believe my parents approach to parenting was very good. While that may seem bias, I know many people who have a different view and who plan to interact with children in a very different way than their parents had. My mom has a background in child development and I believe many of the positive things she did with my siblings and I, and the things I admire from her parenting, stem from this understanding and background. One thing I plan to carry on, that runs in tandem with what we have learned in this class, would be to encourage play always. My mom understood how important this is to growth and after seeing this and learning about it in this class, I understand too how crucial carving time for kids to be creative on their own is. I also love how my parents did not encourage the use of technology unless necessary. While times are changing, I hold the same value that my parents had and still have on limiting screen time and plan to still have this belief even as technology becomes bigger in our lives. My parents also put a large emphasis on good manners, and I for sure plan to have this same emphasis when I become a parent. One way I may try to be a little bit different would be the way that I communicate with my children and having more of an open and honest relationship. Not saying that I did not have this with my parents, but having this open and honest relationship with my children is very important so will have a lot of emphasis in my eyes.

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Being from the U.S., our culture has for sure impacted the way I approached various events. This week was the first time I had thought about how different cultures view developmental milestones differently, which is crazy to think about. This has effected the way I viewed my childhood, and the raising of the kids around me. I think it is so cool how in other cultures, kids are given a much greater sense of agency, especially seen in the example in class of the fruit knife being left on the table. I thought about this and it totally makes sense why kids in our culture seek out these items and as a result hurt themselves because it is an item they are not allowed to interact with as much. If we were to treat it just as if any other object, kids would not pay as much attention to it and as a result not hurt them selves. Things like this that are different from culture to culture which is fascinating to me and how it effects kids as a result.

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Week 9: Impact of Needing Accommodation and Ableism on Play

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Week 9: Impact of Needing Accommodation and Ableism on Play

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After this week, I realized how fortunate I was when it came to my education and opportunities, as many were not treated the same in the classroom or society. I have a lack of disabilities, and therefor have been on the better end when it comes to talking about ableism on play. I have not had to face the same issues that others face when it comes to play and play opportunities. I look at the opportunities I have had when it comes to school or my early years in the classroom and immediately notice the lack of individuals with disabilities. I went to a school with people who all thought like me, which was a big loss in my eyes in my learning experience. I believe having exposure to all kinds of people could have been extremely beneficial to my development, just as it is for those in integrated classrooms. That said, I think I was always able to express my agency because I seemed like what most people call "normal" therefor did not face similar discrimination like those with disabilities have to face.

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I come from a family that speaks all one language, English, so I have not had tons of experience with other languages besides in my mandatory school classes. After this week, I deeply regret this. I had no real exposure in my home life, besides basic words like "agua", while the main source of education was in school. I hated taking spanish in high school, but for the sole reason of the way it was taught, and not the language itself. I had always loved the way other languages sounded and at the beginning of every school year I always got excited that THIS would be the year I would master it and be able to speak better than I had, but was always let down because of the way the classes were structured. The idea of speaking another language had always appealed to me but I never could master it, and it is still something I regret. After this week, I can't help but blame the way it is taught in schools and not introduced to young children in a more raw way. Speaking another language is not something that I have given up on yet, but for my children it has for sure become a priority of mine to introduce them earlier on. There are only benefits and no down sides, so I will for sure keep this in mind moving forward as a teacher, and hopefully a parent someday.

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I think gender and race played a big part in who I am and how I played as a child. As I reflect, most of the toys I was most fond of were for sure catered to girls, like barbies, polly pockets, or american girl dolls. However, I do remember a phase I went through where I really wanted spy gear and a remote control helicopter. I requested these items as a possible birthday present I almost felt ashamed because I knew they were "guys" toys. I ended up getting a mixture of the two, and am so grateful I had parents who did not feed into the idea that kids should play with certain toys. I consider myself lucky too because my sister and brother and myself all played together constantly with each other's toys so I was exposed to different types of toys, not just "girly" toys, and my brother not just to "guys" toys. My race impacted me because I never had to think about the consequences behind concepts exposed from the doll test. It broke my heart to watch these young kids dislike toys that looked like themselves, because I cannot reflect on a time where I had to go through something like that, but I know those of other races had.

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After watching the film "Babies", I was tempted to compare my childhood to the different cultures that were represent then learned that this is the wrong approach. Hattie was the childhood I could relate to the most, which obviously looked very different from children like Ponjiao or Bayarjargal. I was tempted to feel worry when seeing Bayarjargal unsupervised around large animals or all alone in the middle of nowhere, but learned quickly that this was the wrong response. What I consider "normal" is simply what I am used to, while "normal" for other cultures looks completely different. In fact, being alone gave Ponjiao and Bayarjargal much more agency from a young age making them more independent and expressive as they grew up compared to Hattie or Mari. Again, not that either are negative but it is important to look at different cultures and see the positive and negative effects they have on children. While I think I turned out just fine, I can assume I was raised much more like Hattie with my handheld at all times which is not the best approach to give children the agency they crave. I can confidently say that Bayarjargal and Ponjiao  were able to express a level of agency I never will understand and never would growing up the way I did.

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After what we learned this week, I have come to realize how little agency I was given in school. Though we used this example in class, I couldn't begin to count the amount of times that I witnessed "naughty" kids have their recess or free play time taken away or used as an incentive to be better. After this week, this is shocking to me as this free time built into our days/ any child's day are crucial to developing knowledge and critical thinking skills. I went to a very structured school and there was few times where we were given the chance to take control of our learning. We were given the books we had to read, or given the directions to what I considered free flowing activities. The only times I was given true agency was when I was at home. While I am grateful that I was given this at home, it made me realize that I, and many of my peers at schools everywhere, missed out on how much we truly could have gotten out of our educational experiences. Having to work to have free exploring time was what I was accustomed to, which I now know is the completely wrong approach. I was lucky to express my agency at home but hope that schools beging to learn this important lesson to help kids learn to their best ability.

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My family is probably the most influential aspect of my life. I am the youngest of three, which impacted all parts of my life including play. Having constant play companions was the highlight of my growing up as we were constantly entertained. Having one brother and one sister, we broke the norms on "gender specific games", as it didn't matter to any of us if we were playing with G.I. Joe or a game of house. My parents were very supportive of us three, and we were all each other's best friends. I think having two role models so close to my age was influential as I grew, because I had people to constantly watch and observe. Because of this, I believe I grew into being a more mature and independent individual. My family is very close to this day which I am very grateful for, because my life growing up and now would look very different without one of these important people.

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I grew up in a Christian household which I believe also influenced me into the person I became and how I played. To start off my educational career, I attended two different Christian pre schools, which obviously influenced my early play career, as religion is incorporated in most aspects of the play and educational environment. I eventually began attending a secular school but took these values I learned at a young age with me. We attended church most Sundays, as well as attending Sunday school, so Christian morals  were definitely instilled into the individual I was becoming. I believe this religious upbringing taught me to be a better friend to all, as well as shape the values I looked for in a playmate or friend.

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I attended the same school from pre-k to 12th grade, and consider myself incredibly lucky to have had this opportunity. The Kinkaid School gave me life long friends, close knit relationships with peers and staff, and the knowledge of how to treat everyone with respect. Kinkaid placed a big emphasis on being a "whole child/ student", which led to encouraging us all to get involved in an array of sports, arts, and academics I would have never done on my own. For this reason, it impacted me early on in my play as we were exposed to all kinds of people, and obviously taught to accept and treat everyone equally. I credit the brain I have today to this school, and the conversations I am able to have due to encouraging me to be a well rounded member of society.

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As stated above, I attended the same school most of my life, so have had the chance to make lifelong bonds with the people around me. I met my best friend before we even enrolled in school, and to this day are still best friends living in the same college dorm many years later. She, and the rest of my friends have taught me more about myself and the world around me than anyone else could have. When it comes to play, my best friend and I played with each other into the last moment of our childhoods. We taught each other to be shameless of who we were, and I can confidently say she made me a more creative person. As we all began to grow and life changed a bit, they all turned me into the person I am today as I learned about what I truly wanted in a friend and what it takes to be a good friend. These values can also be translated to all aspects of socialization and society so I am incredibly grateful for the friends I have gathered throughout my life.

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From a young age, my parents emphasized the importance of giving back to others and serving your community. Whether it be service trips or walking a few blocks down the street to help with a food drive, we were doing as much as we could. This aspect of my upbringing has been important, as community service is something that I practice frequently in my life as I have grown up. I think it influenced me as a child and in my play life as I was taught how to share, and to help others when they need assistance. Learning the importance of community service is important for many reasons as it helps you be aware of what you can do to help others.

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I traveled a lot as a kid which is another factor of who I was and am. My parents wanted to give all of us the chance to experience new things and see new sights as much as possible. No matter how long the car drive, we would do it if it meant we were experiencing new things as a family. I grew accustomed to being in the car for hours on end, which required a lot of self entertainment for us kids! I think that this exposure to different types of people and cultures made me more well rounded and sensitive to the differences that make us all unique. As stated above, service was always something my family prioritized, which allowed us to also travel to some amazing parts of the world like Central and South America. This exposure helped me become more self aware and understand the differences in certain cultures even as a young child and that we all deserve respect in the end.

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The community I grew up in played a significant role in shaping who I am today. I grew up in a quaint home on a courtyard that was surrounded by 10 other homes. Everyone who lived on the courtyard knew each other on first name basis, and would answer a knock on the door at any time of the day or night. This courtyard holds some of my earliest memories of play, as most of the homes in our community had children around my age. During the nice days, all of our parents pushed us outside to enjoy the weather and entertain ourselves by playing various games or tag or kick ball. This early exposure to constant friends willing to play with me shaped the way I played for the rest of my childhood and life, as well as my love for being in the outdoors. I can not imagine growing up anywhere other than this circular community, as it taught me many of the values I have now and how to always be there for your neighbor, literally and figuratively!

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Growing up as a female, I learned to be strong and not let other people walk on me. I have been lucky to have strong male role models in my life who have never once tried to limit me due to my gender, and have emphasized to never let something like gender judgment be a reason to stop me. I have been in countless situations where comments were made questioning my ability to complete a task strictly based on my gender, or blatant insults that I am less than my male counterparts. While it's hard not to let these kinds of things upset you, certain values were instilled in me to never let someone judge my potential based on something as insignificant as gender. For this reason, I have been able to let comments like this go and never let people limit me before knowing my potential. As a child, I think knowing this and understanding that you are powerful and can do anything you want is incredibly important, and I can confidently say that I have learned this over the years.